Andrew Southcott (Boothby, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Employment Participation, Training and Sport) Share this | Hansard source

I move amendment (3) as circulated in my name:

(3)    Schedule 2, page 16, after item 9 (after line 30), insert:

9A  At the end of section 80

Add:

                  Information to be provided to Minister

        (6)    In each instance of provider default, where there is a call made on the Fund, the Fund Manager shall provide to the Minister a written report within 60 days, which outlines:

             (a)    the date of the default;

             (b)    the nature of the default;

             (c)    the number of students referred;

             (d)    the total refunds paid to students;

             (e)    an estimate of outstanding claims;

              (f)    the current status of the default;

             (g)    information as to whether a suitable alternative course was available;

             (h)    information as to what steps were taken to place students in a suitable alternative course; and

                   (i)    the total number of students placed in a suitable alternative course.

Report to be presented to Parliament

        (7)    The Minister must ensure that a copy of a report under subsection (6) is presented to each House of the Parliament as soon as practicable after receiving the report.

This is an amendment which relates to the transparency of the ESOS assurance fund. Currently under the legislation that we consider there is, as a first tier of consumer protection, the tuition assurance schemes. These are run by bodies, and the most common is ACPET. This was always considered to be the first line of consumer protection for overseas students. The idea was that, in the situation of provider default, the tuition assurance schemes would attempt to find an alternative course rather than making a call on the ESOS assurance fund. The ESOS assurance fund has always been the second line. If a tuition assurance scheme cannot find an alternate course for a student then a call may be made on the ESOS assurance fund.

This amendment provides for some more transparency of the assurance fund. It requires the fund manager to give the minister a report providing more information: the nature of the provider default, the number of students affected and the payments. The amendment provides that the report must be given to the minister within 60 days after the day on which the provider default occurred and the minister must cause a copy of a report given to the minister under this section to be tabled in each house of the parliament as soon as practicable after receiving the report.

There have been some media reports about the ESOS assurance fund and the degree of solvency of the assurance fund. Certainly, if the parliament will be required to top up the assurance fund, we believe that it is important to have more transparency around the assurance fund. I appreciate the discussions that I have had with the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Education, and also with her office, on this. It has been very good in coming to an outcome which would be agreeable.

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